The latest edition of Blawg Review, the weekly review of the best in legal blogging, makes me wonder whether Sutton’s ideas may have a different application.

Blawg Review, usually known for the collegiality that once inspired me to declare it an “18th century coffeehouse for the digital age“, takes a dark turn this week. Hosted by the notorious and anonymous Geeklawyer, Blawg Review #203, replete with images from Victorian era pornography and cheap swipes at legal bloggers, leads me to ask, is it time for a No Asshole Rule for Blawg Review?

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Blawg Review, allow me a brief introduction. Hosted each week by a different blogger, Blawg Review highlights noteworthy legal blogging, sharing the pleasure of discovery of insight, news, and commentary sampled across the spectrum of legal practice.

In preparation for my turn as host, I did a little research into the significance of this particular date, October 13. I turned to that sometimes unreliable, always entertaining, font of 21st century wisdom, Wikipedia, for some answers, and learned that in 1582, thanks to the implementation of the Gregorian calendar that year, October 13 did not exist in Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain.

That’s somehow fitting for a presentation of Blawg Review that celebrates Conflict Resolution Day. Conflict, after all, can be like that. It can make us fiercely wish for entire days to vanish, and that the events that mar them vanish with them. Resolution though looks determinedly ahead; we can’t undo the past, but we can at least undo its results by the choices we make today.

Mediation? Or litigation? That’s how some might frame the choice among dispute resolution methods. With Blawg Review #181, you can have it both ways. Since I’m a mediator, half of this presentation of Blawg Review will commemorate International Conflict Resolution Day by presenting posts relating to conflict resolution, ADR, and negotiation. And, since I’m also a card-carrying member of the Massachusetts bar, the other half will review the best in legal blogging on topics other than ADR. Mediation, litigation — which do you prefer? I’ll let you be the judge (or arbitrator, if you’d rather).

However, to get you in the mood for either mediating or litigating, I invite you first to watch this classic Monty Python sketch, “The Argument”:

We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battle-field, and patriot grave, to every living heart and hearth-stone, all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.

Sutton writes, “I think it is excellent advice. Nastiness sometimes leads to short-term wins, but the long-term costs are usually horrible.” If only we could all be touched by our own better angels.

If you’re interested in finding out what role the internet and technology can play in resolving disputes, then sign up for ODR Cyberweek 2008, an all-online conference featuring demonstrations, discussions, and other events exploring the application of technology to dispute resolution, negotiation, and more, running from October 13 – 17, 2008. Registration is entirely free. (Bonus for the eco-conscious: because it’s all online, you can keep your carbon footprint small.)

When mistakes happen, conflict resolution can produce apologies and reconciliation. Yet fear of civil litigation can stand in the way of disclosure and apology — although movements across a number of fields are pushing to change that. Slaw reports on “New Proposed Apology Legislation in Ontario” designed to promote accountability and patient safety, together with the speedy resolution of civil disputes, among other goals. With apologies for mistakes in mind, Richard Webb at the Health Care ADR Blog muses, “Do Doctors Confess Errors Only When Caught?”

There would probably be far less need for apologies if only people would stop using technology when drunk. Peter Black, of Freedom to Differ, points to “Drunks outsmart Google,” an article he’s written for the Courier-Mail that mocks Mail Goggles, Google’s effort to create an email tool that verifies that users intend to send an email by requiring them to correctly complete a few math problems first.

Blogs about ADR abound these days. The newest addition to the steadily growing ADR blogosphere is Real Divorce Mediation, published by experienced civil litigator and mediator Nancy Hudgins, who also blogs at Civil Negotiation and Mediation, and collaborative lawyer Debra Synovec. (If you’re curious to sample the wide range of blogs devoted to ADR, conflict resolution, and negotiation, visit the blog I created to track them world-wide, ADRblogs.com.)

One advantage to disputants that mediation offers over litigation is this: it allows those who are directly involved in the dispute and most knowledgeable about the facts and the issues involved — namely the disputants themselves — to be in charge of designing the resolution — rather than leaving the outcome in the hands of a judge and jury who may well know bupkes about the subject matter of the dispute. In “Supreme Court Balancing“, Patterico’s Pontifications illustrates this brilliantly, reporting on a Supreme Court case involving the use by the Navy of sonar that might interfere with the ability of marine mammals to navigate, in which Justice Stephen Breyer commented:

You are asking us who know nothing about whales and less about the military to start reading all these documents to try to figure out who’s right in the case where the other side says the other side is totally unreasonable.

Yup. Exactly my point.

Just as filing suit has its limitations as a tactic in negotiation, so, too, do fisticuffs as a tool for resolving disputes. Sometimes though a punch in the nose can produce some small satisfaction (although not, as a general rule, for the recipient of such attention), as Colin Samuels at Infamy or Praise reports in his weekly feature “Thank God It’s Schadenfreude” (motto: “this week’s joy in the misfortune of others”): “Richard Fuld, the disgraced head of Lehman Brothers, was punched in the face in the office gym amid the bank’s collapse…”

Now here’s the rest — posts on legal issues and ideas, the business of law, and legal miscellany.

The following posts cover legal issues, decisions, and trends in the law.

In “Before Carcieri v. Kempthorne, It’s Olson v. Larisa“The Wall Street Journal‘s Law Blog reports that lawyers just might need a mediator to settle a dispute over who gets to argue a case before the Supreme Court — the lawyer involved with the case for 10 years or an attorney who’s argued 49 Supreme Court cases.

Above the Law selects as its “Lawsuit of the Day” a suit brought against cosmetics and haircare giant L’Oreal by a blonde claiming to have been traumatized when a hair coloring mishap transformed her into a brunette.

In “Clients Are Extraordinarily Understanding“, Bruce MacEwan at Adam Smith, Esq., asks whether 19th century notions of conflicts make sense in a 21st century world: “In what other profession would going to the most qualified expert raise the hint of the shadow of the bizarre notion of ‘conflicts?'”

Pink has become an almost universally recognized symbol for breast cancer awareness. Two blogs bring different thoughts to the meaning of pink, with Likelihood of Confusion contemplating Pepperidge Farm Mint Milanos in pink packaging in “Think Pink“, and Crooked Timber pondering how culture shapes the way people discuss and cope with cancer in “Pink“.

Blawg Review itself is a weekly miracle, a monument to dedication and perseverance. Under the guidance of its anonymous editor, Blawg Review presents the many facets of legal blogging, refracted through the lens of each week’s host. Kaleidoscope-like, at each turn Blawg Review reveals new patterns as it shows us the life and art of law. With each host, the colors shift and new shapes emerge.

Blawg Review, in short, dazzles. Consider the efforts of these recent hosts:

This week, Andis Kaulins, an American expat, hosts the exuberant Blawg Review #180 at his blog Law Pundit based in Germany and celebrates German-American Day in style.

The innovative Peter Black presented Blawg Review #178 from Australia at his blog, Freedom to Differ, becoming the first host ever to use the social networking service Twitter to deliver Blawg Review throughout the day to his readers.

Anita Campbell, editor of Small Business Trends, an online publication covering trends and new directions that affect the small business owner, describes herself as “an entrepreneur at heart almost her entire life”.

Highlights of Blawg Review #177 include a tutorial on Twitter, a popular social networking tool; a new slant on web site bio pages; and a one-stop resource for tax information for small business owners.

Posted onSeptember 9, 2008|Comments Off on International Literacy Day celebrated at Blawg Review No. 176

My son graduated in June from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a double major in legal studies and philosophy. As you might imagine, he’s an avid reader who enjoys the lively exchange of ideas, particularly around our family’s kitchen table during visits home. Over Labor Day weekend, while we were grilling steaks together, he asked me a question: why isn’t there a constitutional right to education in the U.S.?

I thought it a good question. Why not indeed? Given how important education is to human growth and potential, to political and social stability, to vanquishing poverty, and to participation in democracy itself, there should be.

Literacy can’t function in a vacuum. It must be nurtured before it can flourish, and thrive, and enrich us. Celebrate literacy. Ignorance of anykind is dangerous. It can turn our daily playing field into a mine field. Literacy, on the other hand, lets us successfully navigate the dangers and gives us the freedom to succeed. It feeds the mind, the heart, and the soul.

I think my son would agree.

Comments Off on International Literacy Day celebrated at Blawg Review No. 176

Memes are single units of culture — ideas, behavior, customs, or trends — transmitted virally from one individual to the next. On the internet, memes often spread and propagate through blogs, whose very nature makes them ideal for the viral transmission that memes depend upon to survive.

Between you and me, I am no fan of blog-memes. They function like chain letters: when a blogger is “tagged” with a meme, he or she must respond in a designated way and pass the meme along, “tagging” other bloggers who in turn must contaminate still others with the meme.

I do acknowledge some positive things about blog-memes. They don’t arrive with the predictions of doom commonly associated with chain letters, which promise misfortune or even death to those who break the chain. And memes at bottom are impromptu games — a burst of spontaneity and playfulness — a welcome relief after the tedium of blogging about weightier topics. In short, they’re fun.

The idea is to post links to five great blogs (other than law blogs) on your blawg and tag five of your favorite blawgers to do the same under the post title ‘5 Blogs & 5 Blawgers’.

Since there is little I wouldn’t do for Ed., this is one meme I am only too happy to take part in.

Here then are 5 great blogs:

The Map Room. I have always loved maps, which not only describe and measure the terrain to be traversed but are also culturally constructed, reflecting the wondrous geography of human minds and hearts. Maps depict places that exist in the world as well as those that exist in our imaginations only. This blog covers all those territories.

Sociological Images. By showing visitors the images that media relentlessly bombard us with, this blog holds up a mirror to stereotypes, judgments, and cultural constructions and depictions of gender, race, religion, sexuality, and more. Not always workplace safe so browse with care.

Blawg Review, a weekly roaming blog carnival focusing on law and justice, spotlights the best in legal blogging. Each week a different blogger plays host. It is a truly Olympian feat, demanding preparation, commitment, and hard work, yielding rewards for both host and reader, while behind each host stands Blawg Review‘s anonymous editor.

This month, in honor of the Olympic games in Beijing, the presentations of Blawg Review have possessed Olympic themes (or, in one case, an Olympic length). They are:

Blawg Review #173, hosted by Chicago IP Litigation Blog, relies upon the elements of a world-record swim to frame the presentation. Highlights include advice on avoiding people traps at networking events, a report of one public library that allows kids to rent R-rated movies, and analysis of the Russia-Georgia conflict.

Blawg Review #172, hosted by Ohio Employer’s Law Blog, is an Olympic-themed Blawg Review, and includes a brief but fascinating history of the origin of the Olympic games. In addition to finding links to more serious content, you’ll also learn of the ACLU’s avowed commitment to protect your right to wear a mullet.

Blawg Review #171, presented by IP ADR Blog, celebrates virgins, as mediator Victoria Pynchon serves as host of Blawg Review for the first time. This Olympic-sized edition of Blawg Review was so lengthy, it needed its own executive summary.

Posted onJuly 29, 2008|Comments Off on Mediator Victoria Pynchon hosts Blawg Review for first time on IP ADR Blog

They say you never forget your first time.

And something tells me that Victoria Pynchon, mediator and author of the negotiation blog Settle It Now, will leave us all with plenty to remember as she plays first-time host to Blawg Review this coming Monday at her second home, IP ADR Blog.

Want to know the identities of the other Blawg Review virgins? The anonymous editor of Blawg Review kisses and tells. Meanwhile, let’s all see what we can do to make Vickie’s first time really special — visit IP ADR Blog on Monday, August 4, and, if you’re a blogger, give her some link love.

Since 2005 I’ve been a devoted supporter of Blawg Review, the weekly review of the best in legal blogging. It isn’t just for lawyers — the ideas, analyses of news, and viewpoints you’ll find there are relevant to anyone who seeks intelligent conversation about legal issues or smart tips on the business of running a practice — law or ADR.

Whisper is founded on one big idea: “The key to any effective marketing, branding or advertising effort is to change and take ownership of the conversation.”

Helping people shape and take ownership of the conversation is something we mediators know plenty about. But branding our work and branding ourselves? — not so much, as my colleague Tammy Lenski has pointed out. Whisper, however, has a lot to teach us. Blawg Review #169 presents examples of effective branding and shares Whisper’s philosophy of strategic brand building.